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A LESSON IN SELF-CARE

FIRST HOT YOGA CLASS OF THE DAY - 5:15 AM CDT

This is the first of four (4) hot yoga classes I will be taking today. At the yoga studio I got to we are in the midst of a 'yoga challenge,' which this time is 20, 30 or 40 classes 42 days. Of course I'm going for 40 classes in 20 days and I foresee a couple of days ahead where I will not be able to make one class. So I'm front-loading now so that it all evens out in the end. So if I do four (4) classes today, two of the classes today will make up for one (1) day in the future.

This morning's 5:15 AM class was rough. At the end of class I remembered that I was so busy yesterday writing that I didn't stop to eat much. I had a bowl of soup after the 5:15 AM class and then a bowl of soup a couple of hours before the 6:00 PM class. That kind of schedule is what my daily schedule looked like before hot yoga. I should have stopped to go to the 12:00 PM class if I was going to work like that. My body was sore, I hadn't eaten much the day before and I probably didn't drink too much after last night's class. Needless to say, I felt really crappy, but I was present, I worked-it, I sweated, I did every pose and I conquered.

SECOND HOT YOGA CLASS OF THE DAY - 9:00 AM CDT

Right after the 5:15 AM class I stopped on the way home to get a 4 pack of protein shakes so that I could get some nourishment on the way home. I also grabbed a couple of bottles of Gatorade™. If I plan on doing four (4) classes today, then protein and electrolytes is what needs to go into the ol' gal. I buzzed home, stripped in the laundry room coming in from the garage, dried off and put on a clean pair of yoga-wear. Then I sat down in my office and finished up some Astro-Memes for September, which I will be posting soon. Then I was off to the 9:00 AM class.

I felt so much better just a couple of hours later and ready to go again. I could tell I was still in 'recovery' from the first class but I felt a lot better. Believe me, I have felt a lot worse in a hot yoga class and sometimes a little reminder of self-care will keep me from feeling cruddy again anytime soon. I'm sure it will happen again, but not anytime soon. Class one and class two were the same sequence, so I knew what to expect and I knew that I could get through it.

I did notice that I was taking the advice from the video I posted in yesterday's Daily Habitual Ritual when it came time for high lunge. (*I posted it again below.) I tucked my lower abdomen in to give myself more space and was able to stride forward even more so I would not have to grab and pull my ankle so far. I also raised my fingers to rest on my fingertips to give myself a couple of more inches. It worked! Check out the video because that was a fabulous tip. I still had to grab my ankle but I was further than half-way there. Yay for me! [More . . . ]

THIRD HOT YOGA CLASS OF THE DAY - 12:00 PM CDT

Ahhhhhhhh, this was a stretch class, but even a stretch class can leave you hangin' in a sweat. And the more fit you are, the more your body will heat up faster in response to engaging in activity because the body is designed to cool itself down using sweat. So when I go to a stretch class, sweat pours off of me 'as if' I was in a regular 105 degree class. The stretch classes are only 90 degrees, which many of us hot-as-hell yogi's find a bit cool. On a day when of four (4) classes in the midst of a challenge, a stretch class counts as a class, so I'm all-in! A stretch class takes a bit off the edge. There were several yogi's from the earlier classes, so you see, I'm not the only one front-loading.

FOURTH HOT YOGA CLASS OF THE DAY - 6:00 PM CDT

I felt pretty Good going into this last class of the day. The Good news is it was only 45 minutes instead of 60 minutes. I hadn't realized that so it was a 'gift'. I didn't press as hard into my poses as I probably could have, but I know my body and a yoga hot room is no place for a big ego. I had noticed my forward folds are feeling much better and I am constantly digging a little bit deeper. My hands are reaching the floor and my legs are getting straighter. While we are in a forward fold I can also see my thighs and calves are getting stronger as well, meaning I can see my muscles because so much fat has been dissolved. You may think that a forward fold is nothing (bending over), but you are still pressing into certain areas on your feet, you are still stretching your spine toward the earth. Check out the muscle pic to see exactly what is being worked.

**This web site's goal is to provide you with information that may be useful in attaining optimal health. Nothing in it is meant as a prescription or as medical advice. You should check with your physician before implementing any changes in your exercise or lifestyle habits, especially if you have physical problems or are taking medications of any kind.